Watanabe Shinichiro Directs Sakamichi no Apollon

by dtshyk
Jan 26, 2012 4:39 PM | 84 Comments

According to the official website, the production staff of Sakamichi no Apollon was announced. Watanabe Shinichiro and Kanno Yoko will work together for the first time in 12 years since Cowboy Bebop movie. It will be aired in Noitamina block from April.

Sakamichi no Apollon official website (trailer)

Staff:
Director: Watanabe Shinichiro
Character Designer: Yuki Nobuteru
Chief Animation Director: Yamashita Yoshimitsu
Script: Kakihara Yuko ("Persona 4 The Animation"), Kato Ayako ("Chihayafuru")
Music: Kanno Yoko
Production Studio: MAPPA (Maruyama Masao's new studio), Tezuka Productions

Source: OCN

Story by [profile=Alterego-X]Alterego-X[/profile]

More Info

20 of 84 Comments Recent Comments

PV looks awesome. Even the bit that looks like a beach episode looks fun. And anything with Art Blakey reference gets my vote.

Mar 31, 2012 10:52 AM by removed-user

jmal said:

FallingSeason said:
The Second PV came out.

The CG instruments are making me twitch already, but the overall feel is really, really good. I'm looking forward to this.

Watch the video in HD, none of the instruments are CGI.

Mar 31, 2012 10:45 AM by TreF

Those drums... that music... those characters... that haters gonna hate walk...

I will be physically astounded if this manages to be anything short of amazing.

Mar 30, 2012 2:49 PM by StreetFighter

The Second PV came out.

Mar 30, 2012 2:23 PM by CEOAmaterasu

I too am excited for this, also curious.. But I wonder how is this gonna be creative like Bebop or Champloo... I mean it's just a story about 2 guys and their interest for Jazz music (Which I like) but that's just a slice of life series... In what sense do you think it'll be epic ?

Mar 13, 2012 3:18 AM by Eliqsir

I was already excited after seeing the chara designs and reading the first 2 chapters of the manga, but with this combo, I am even more excited.

This is gonna be amazing, right next to Uchuu Kyoudai for best animes of the spring I bet XD

Dalek-baka said:
looks like K-On! with jazz minus moe (but who knows)
may be good but still it's jazz... so I won't even bother with it

Ugh...please don't mention that shitty anime here. Basing off the manga, this is so much more than slice-and-life.

Mar 7, 2012 3:02 PM by leokiko

Sales only really say much about the people who like the show, not the show itself. Like you said, it's only a viewer response, and can only measure the popularity of a medium. It is in no way a measure of inherent quality, all it does is confirm that the show has a certain quality that appeals to a large amount of people, such as otaku fanservice (Bakemonogatari), moe schoolgirls (K-On!), or homolust (Gundam SEED). That doesn't say anything about the entire show though, does it? Shows that sell well (usually, there are exceptions) have attributes that can appeal to a wide range of particular fans, which is undeniably a successful way of selling a show. That doesn't mean the show is a masterpiece though. It just means it's popular and generally well-received. Doesn't mean it's a piece of shit though, either. While I certainly hate the word, it all comes down to 'opinions.' Simply arguing that "a lot of people like this show, so it must have some good qualities" is ridiculous.

Sales are only a relevant point when it comes to factoring in merchandise (official and fan-made) and second seasons/spin-offs. They can only contribute slight and very general insight to a show, like a footnote in this supposed story of yours. So sales do matter, but not in the way that should ever, ever impact how good or bad you think a show is (or anyone else for that matter). I don't even know why you posted that, since you seem to think somewhat similarly.

Feb 17, 2012 2:27 PM by fantastic

RyanSaotome said:
AnoHana and Guilty Crown are both better than anything I've seen aired on noitaminA.

You have horrendous taste.

RyanSaotome said:
Plus, they also both sold better (well, projected numbers for Guilty Crown do) than anything else on noitaminA in the last couple years,

What do sales have to do with the quality of a show?

RyanSaotome said:
I almost always skip Josei, and only watched Usagi Drop last year due to a spoiler I heard about its ending.

Jesus Christ.

RyanSaotome said:
Josei stuff is the ultimate borefest, and Cowboy Bebop is probably the most overrated anime of all time, so its totally set up to be another one of those "Very deep but not actually good" shows people love.

This has to be the most idiotic thing I've read all month. You know I can be pretty lenient when it comes to opinions that differ to my my own (highly superior) opinions, not everyone is going to like the same thing, yeah yeah... However, this statement flies right past just mere opinion and lands smack dab in the realm of idiocy.

Feb 16, 2012 10:49 PM by fantastic

Eh, this show will probably be good but I don't have much interest in i-

>Yoko Kanno
what

>Watanabe Shinichiro
WHAT

WHAT THE HELL
OH MAN
I'M DOWN

Feb 2, 2012 8:40 AM by Droplet

Been a while since a show popped up that I actually want to watch before it even airs. Trying to keep my expectations non-existant. In the meanwhile I'll just medicate with Kanno-sama's magic.

Jan 29, 2012 9:12 PM by tilitappaaja

I'm very excited for this. I don't expect it to be the next Bebop or Champloo(I don't want it to be. I want it to be it's own show and stand on it's own 'two feet' because of it's own inherent quality) though.

April is looking good already.

RyanSaotome said:
Cowboy Bebop is probably the most overrated anime of all time,

That is your opinion and I will respect that. It is also my opinion in that I don't think you know what you're talking about in the slightest bit.

Jan 29, 2012 6:40 PM by Hias

RyanSaotome said:

SageShinigami said:
What, the fuck...it's only 8AM and I've already seen the silliest thing possible today? What is this I don't even

*sighs*

Anyway. I love Shinichiro and Yoko, but I every genre on that list is against my personal tastes. I'll give the first episode a try but I'd really rather the two of them get together on something that could match Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo's amazingness.

Cowboy Bebop rides on the nostalgia of Adult Swim. I didn't see it until 2 years ago, since I didn't get into anime through the whole Adult Swim thing a decade ago, and it just wasn't very good to me. I persevered through it, but it was because people kept on telling me it would get better, and it never did.

I'm probably not the target demographic of shows like that, since I got into anime through the moe boom 5 years ago, but yeah.

Well, maybe for someone like you who presumes that a major part of the users in this site saw CB through Adult Swim, which is very unlikely, given how there are many users from Italy, Greece and so on. Not only that but even those users that could watch CB through Adult Swim may have not done so.

Last thing, though: the fact that you didn't like it does not mean it is overrated. Although, for me calling something overrated has always been a silly way to say that someone just couldn't get into a show for whatever reason and then tries to belittle it by calling it overrated.

Jan 29, 2012 7:51 AM by Miya_F_Exia

OMG I CANT WAIT!!!!!!!!! the manga is so exceptionally beautiful and knowing that bunch of competent people will make the anime adaptation just make me jizz all over kyaaaaaaa

this anime hasn't even started yet but i need to say this
"Sakamichi no Apollon" Is the best anime since 1910-eternity thanksss goddddddddd

Jan 29, 2012 7:08 AM by millo

Lordcrab86 said:
i've never been this excited for an upcoming show

Yup.

Jan 28, 2012 8:59 PM by NeverKnowsBest26

Can't wait :D Been waiting for this to happen!

Jan 28, 2012 4:26 PM by Ekvi

I'm just here to say I join the hype (even though there's almost nothing about it out yet xP).

Jazz, Josei , Historical, Watanabe and Kanno, only one girl in the trailer XD
That at least got me intrigued. I want more news about it soon!

RyanSaotome said:

I'm probably not the target demographic of shows like that, since I got into anime through the moe boom 5 years ago, but yeah.

Oh noes, let das moe booom be damned for it's evulz acts! XD

jmal said:

As for WataShin, I can't get as excited about him as some others here but he's obviously competent at the very least. His fame in the west is about 90% Bebop, with the rest being mostly Champloo and a smidge for Macross Plus I guess. Nothing I'd rank as a personal favorite but I don't have any reason to fear his involvement either.

That's because he really have not directed too many stuff. He did some other participations like storyboards (Escaflowne, Eureka Seven, Ergo Proxy, Gundam Wing) or music (Michiko to Hatchin) or even that entry for Genius Party (I liked it xD).

Hey, I can see your point but I don't think it's needed for him to have a "big in quantity" list of works when to me he's so "big in quality" at what he already did. xD You get the few he did and see the way he blend music with action and the attention to every detail... Sure it's usually a lot episodic instead of being more of linear and consistent plot that "work as a whole" which might be saw as bad but there's a thing in there called "style" that I just have to say... Not many people can pull that off. xD

And of course Kanno helped a lot in that "style" with her awesome songs so Apollon has good prospects of becoming the great piece of this year!

Jan 28, 2012 4:15 PM by TBOkmph

great must watch this hope its good!

Jan 28, 2012 9:15 AM by Ahmer

Cowboy Bebop rides on the nostalgia of Adult Swim. I didn't see it until 2 years ago, since I didn't get into anime through the whole Adult Swim thing a decade ago, and it just wasn't very good to me. I persevered through it, but it was because people kept on telling me it would get better, and it never did.

I'm probably not the target demographic of shows like that, since I got into anime through the moe boom 5 years ago, but yeah.

Jan 28, 2012 6:29 AM by RyanSaotome

Wow, I can't wait to see that.
This trailer really got me excited. O_o

Jan 28, 2012 6:14 AM by Liloute

RyanSaotome said:

nextday said:

GaYpOrN said:
BRS hasn't even aired yet and you are commenting on it's quality?

Then I will change that to very likely to be below average based on the trailers, staff, and studio.

Either way, it's undeniable that 2011 was noitaminA's worst year yet. I hope they turn around and go back to their roots.

Its quite deniable, based on your taste. I really prefer the type of anime they aired in 2011 than what they showed in the past. AnoHana and Guilty Crown are both better than anything I've seen aired on noitaminA.
---
Anyway, not really interested in this show. I almost always skip Josei, and only watched Usagi Drop last year due to a spoiler I heard about its ending. Josei stuff is the ultimate borefest, and Cowboy Bebop is probably the most overrated anime of all time, so its totally set up to be another one of those "Very deep but not actually good" shows people love.

What, the fuck...it's only 8AM and I've already seen the silliest thing possible today? What is this I don't even

*sighs*

Anyway. I love Shinichiro and Yoko, but I every genre on that list is against my personal tastes. I'll give the first episode a try but I'd really rather the two of them get together on something that could match Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo's amazingness.

Jan 28, 2012 6:12 AM by SageShinigami

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